


Revelations

by GalacticNova3



Category: kirby - Fandom
Genre: Character Development, Gen, Headcanon, Kirby's Return To Dreamland - Freeform, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-16
Updated: 2019-01-16
Packaged: 2019-10-11 01:07:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,066
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17436980
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GalacticNova3/pseuds/GalacticNova3
Summary: Meta Knight pays a long overdo visit to Magolor in the Lor Starcutter, though his intentions are not exactly the noble sort one would expect from a knight.He soon learns that Magolor was being literal when he mentioned the ship having a mind of its own– and that Lor is rather protective of her pilot.The ensuing debate between the warrior and Starcutter results in the truth coming out about the things Magolor neglected to tell his own ship, followed by a heavy conversation between the computer and mage.





	Revelations

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry for not posting here in a while! I wrote this to flesh out some characters I plan to have appear rather often, and to adress my Magolor's motivations and current state of redemption. It ended up getting a lot heavier than initially planned, though; I shed at least a few tears writing this!

It had been years since Meta Knight had spoken to Magolor. While Kirby had been rather quick to forgive him, with Bandana Dee and Dedede close behind, the knight was still suspicious of the mage. He'd had brief encounters and conversations, made some threats. In truth he considered it a feat of self control that he hadn't already offed the Halcandran.  
Today, however, that self control would truly be tested. It was during a patrol that he saw the Lor Starcutter descend into Cookie Country, this time landing correctly rather than crashing. While he was aware the ship often stayed here, he considered it a bold move to land in the presence of his own battleship. Hmm… perhaps this was a challenge to his authority?   
Whether that truly was the intention or not, he decided it was time to remind the deceiver of his place in this galaxy. He not-so-subtly turns his own ship to land nearby, so that it would only be a short walk to the other vessel from his own. Of course, he hadn't believed many of tales things the alien had spoken of, so he was in for an interesting encounter.

Lor, up to this point, had never met Meta Knight. She wasn't awake when he helped rebuild her. She only knows about him because of research she conducted on Popstar to understand it better. She had recognized the Halberd whilst landing, though she hadn't expected it to land as well.   
What she expected less was to meet the famed knight in person; perhaps he recognized she was a Starcutter? He did have ties to Halcandra due to his bloodline, apparently. Personally she was somewhat excited to meet him! However, her pilot did not share that sentiment.  
“>Magolor? What's wrong?”  
The mage, currently, was staring wide-eyed at the ship’s monitor. At the moment it was displaying a security camera’s live feed, and in turn the fact that Meta Knight was approaching the ship.   
“He's… he's coming…”  
“>Yeah! Isn't it cool? You could get his autograph!”  
“.....”  
Damnit, he still hadn't told Lor what happened years ago. He couldn't explain this to her now, not when the warrior was right outside the door. What to do, what to do…  
A solid knock interrupts his panicked thinking.   
“>Aren't you going to get the door? Or do you want me to?”  
“D-don't let him inside, I-I’ll go out…”  
The Starcutter was growing concerned.  
“>Are you sure? You seem very stressed about this. Is something the matter? Please tell me.”  
“Well, uh… to… to, er, put things lightly… I, uh… did something… very wrong a while ago, and… um…”  
His ears are pressed flat against his head, and it takes a moment for him to stabilize his voice enough to continue speaking.  
“He, um… hasn't... forgiven me. He, er, really… hates me… and, well, uh… scares me… a… a lot…”  
By now he was shaking visibly, thoughts of what might happen flashing through his mind. At this point he feels like his soul will leave his body if Meta so much as raises his voice at him. And that's only if his blade doesn't cleave it out of him first.   
“>... In that case, I think this is something I should handle. You stay inside until I make sure things are ok, alright?”  
In truth, Lor would have preferred to have more information on the prior situation. However, upon seeing her pilot’s current state and hearing another solid knock, she decides questions could wait until later.  
“O-ok… Thank you, Lor…”

He's knocked multiple times and gotten no answer. What was that liar planning? He knows he has to be in that ship, he just saw it flying not long ago. And reaching the door wouldn't take that long at all. Either he's stalling or setting up some kind of plan.   
“Open up, coward! I know you're hiding in there, and so help me if you don't open the door I'll make sure this sword is-”  
“>Excuse me, sir, what did you just say?”  
The computerized, yet feminine voice caught Meta off guard. The knight momentarily pauses, blinking a few times in confusion.   
“I… wait a minute, this must be one of your little tricks, isn't it? Well I won't fall for it again!”  
“>Tricks? What do you mean, we've never met!”  
“Don't play games with me, Magolor! I know you're using some sort of voice changing software to try and fool me!”  
The knight is determined to look the Halcandran in the eyes. He won't let speakers and voice technology get in his way.   
“>You're mistaken, I'm Lor. The ship. And you insulted and threatened my pilot, which I will not accept. Now apologize to him.”  
“I said don't play-”  
Suddenly, the door partially opens, revealing the currently mortified Halcandran inside, shaking like jello. Not next to any of the Lor’s consoles or keypads. He's even got his hands on his ears, though that's out of stress rather than showing it's not him.  
“L-L-Lor shut the d-door please!!”  
For once, the AI does as she's told, closing the door mere seconds after the command. The warrior outside is stunned.  
“>There. Now do you believe me? I'm having to talk to you because currently, my pilot is not in the state to do so, if you couldn't see.”  
“... My apologies. I was not aware that you were… sentient.”  
“>Don't apologize to me, apologize to him for how you've acted towards him this visit. I don't know what history you two have together, and frankly I don't care at the moment. It's a miracle he's not in tears right now. Oh, spoke too soon.”  
This made the knight more weary of the ship. Based on what it's saying, it probably doesn't know what happened back then. Perhaps that has something to do with the damage it sustained when he and the others battled it with Landia? It only seemed to act on its own after that point...  
All that aside, he can already tell by the tone that the Lor Starcutter likely wasn't going to be reasoned with. Which, while he didn't want to accept, meant that things would be more difficult. It's clear that these two must have some kind of “bond”, if the ship can form them at least. He doesn't know; AI can be complicated.   
“... I will not apologize to him. Not until he apologizes to me for what he did first.”  
His eyes narrow.  
“Face to face.”

Lor was starting to really not like this guy.   
“>I don't trust your tone. I'm aware you have a weapon on your person because of your threat earlier; I will not open this door until I can guarantee you are not a risk to his safety. If you came to do him harm you may as well just leave now.”  
“I'd expect a mature adult to not hide behind a computer. He can stay inside for all I care, that just gives me less reason to respect him or apologize.”  
Oh, now he's made a mistake. He doesn't know it, but he's about to. Unfortunately he couldn't prepare himself for the change in the ship’s attitude, as it doesn't have any facial features to denote such things.   
“>Mature adult? You think he's an adult!? He's only 57! For his kind that's the equivalent of about 16! You think he wants to come out and face you when you've acted how you have already!? He's already got anxiety, and I can't imagine what you were going to say to him was going to be gentle enough to not make him feel worse than he already does!”  
Yikes… The knight winces at the sudden increase in volume, his sensitive hearing having not been prepared. The angry ship silences him for the moment. Goodness, it's not even finished.  
“>And even if he was an adult, so what? You think it's still ok to come bang on someone's door and demand to see them? And call them a coward and not respect them when they don't come? And in this case, accuse them of lying when a different voice replies!? Do you think that's fair of you? Is that just?!”  
The knight takes a moment to consider what has been said. It's obvious he has… overestimated Magolor's physical and mental development. That… changes things. It makes him regret some things he's said and threats he's made towards the other. The anxiety would explain spending most of his time in the ship, too… 

“.....”  
“>I'd be speechless too if I was in your situation! I bet you're the one that gave him nightmares of having his ears cut off!”  
Now the guilt was really beginning to surface. He had lost his temper and said some things months ago, including the threat to remove the Halcandran’s ears as a warning if he did anything suspicious. Afterwards, he hadn't thought much of it, but… if his words affected the boy enough to give him nightmares, even in such close proximity to the Fountain of Dreams…   
He can't even think of what kind of trauma he's caused the teen, actually. Traitor or not, nobody should have to be awoken by nightmares here. Not in this place, not after how he fought to protect the relic here.   
“... I was not aware of his age at the time. I understand what I've done wasn't right or appropriate, but at the same time what your pilot did was–”  
“>Don't even finish that sentence! Age doesn't matter when you're using your position to make threats to someone! I should know better than anyone! Imagine people in power threatening to kill you for wanting basic respect! Or hating you when you do things wrong!”  
It's at this point that the knight realizes perhaps this is a personal subject for the ship. Which… isn't going to make this situation any better. But it does make him wonder what it may have experienced to feel this way. But this isn't the time for thinking about that or asking questions, the machine is still ranting...  
“>Do you think that's fair!? Or do you just not believe in second chances!? And what kind of learning or self-improvement can come from that, when nobody is giving you any reason to do better, or ignoring your progress in favor of a grudge!?”  
“I understand that. But in this situation, I cannot simply forgive his actions.”  
“>I’m not at all saying you have to forgive him for whatever he did. That's for you to decide for your own comfort. But your lack of forgiveness gives you no right to harass my son– pilot. Because not only have you made it harder for him to forgive himself, but you and those treating him this way have caused even more damage.”  
It seems she's starting to calm down now. However, Meta did notice the… interesting thing that Lor called the mage on accident. Hmm… He wonders if perhaps Magolor has that sort of relationship with the AI as a sort of… coping mechanism? If he's as young as the ship says, it would make sense to want at least some sort of parental figure...  
“>You haven't had to console him when he'd cry on your dashboard. You haven't had to remind him that he hasn't lost or wasted his chance to be who he wants to be. You haven't helped him cope with the consequences of things he can't talk about without breaking down. No, you don't know him like I do, and you should be ashamed of how you've acted towards him, even just here.”

Ah, trying to play to his emotions, are you? He's not going to let that happen. Whether what he did was right or not is still somewhat debatable, and using guilt as a means to get what you want is something the knight will not tolerate.  
“If I had known he was as young as he is, I would have acted differently towards him! An adult wouldn't be hurt so badly by the warnings I give. And he deserves those warnings either way, young or not. You don't even appear to know the full story, and yet you are passing judgment on how I have treated that traitor!?”  
He can't believe he's talking to a ship. He's talking to and yelling at a literal ship. And getting worked up because of it.   
“I'm sure at least half of what he's told you about me is lies! I don't readily search him out to do him harm, I keep him in line so he doesn't pull the same scheme he pulled over me and my friends!”  
“>Tell me, then, how has he been acting that you would define as “out of line”?Because I've heard that plenty of times, and many of those times being “out of line” was confused with experiencing basic freedom. I can't supervise him at all times, so I'm sure you should be able to give me examples if you have watched him so closely.”  
He could tell by the computer’s tone that it was convinced he had no examples.   
“Well, he's… he…”  
Go on, Meta Knight, you've gotta have something, right? Surely he hasn't just been going off his own anger over what happened in the past to direct how he treats Magolor?  
“... He needs punishment for what he did. Even if it was years ago, I will not allow him to have his redemption until he gets what he deserves.”  
“>Oh! Oh! Is that it, then!? Was losing his entire family and having to start back at square one with making friends not enough? Being barred from returning home, lest he be executed or put to hard labor? You think he isn't mentally and physically scarred by whatever it was that happened? Are those not good enough consequences for you!?”  
“Those are the natural consequences of his actions! He should've known that would happen when he did what he did! So no, those are not good enough consequences for me! Not after he used us like that! You know what? Let me give you a basic explanation of what he did to us!  
He had us travel across this entire planet to rebuild you after you crash landed right here in Cookie Country. We risked our lives doing that, and as a reward we got taken to Halcandra. You got shot down by that dragon, Landia, and he sent us to go defeat it.”  
He has to stop to catch his breath for a moment. His eyes are burning a deep red, a clear indication of the amount of anger he is currently experiencing.  
“And do you know what our reward was for that?! Your pilot tried to take over the entire universe, starting with our planet! We and the dragon chased him into Another Dimension, where he used you as a tool to fight us!  
And when we defeated you, he abandoned you; he left you to crash into Nova knows where! I'm sure he hasn't told you any of this, has he!? And that's not even the end of it! We defeated him directly, and the abomination that he turned into afterwards!”  
He looks around the ship, looking for its equivalent of eyes. He wanted to stare into them, because that would be the best way to communicate his current emotions. Words alone wouldn't give it the information it needed to know.   
“>.....”  
Inside, Magolor was shaking, panic making him nauseous. He wasn't ready for this, not now, not today. It takes all of his willpower not to throw up on the floor. But that doesn't keep him from sobbing.  
“You can decide for yourself if you're going to excuse his actions. But I will never forgive him. Not until he properly repays his debts.”   
With that, Meta Knight storms off, taking flight and returning to the deck of his own ship. He was glad at least his own wouldn't question him on his morals. A rookie crew member of the Halberd almost asks what had happened, but a glare from their captain tells them now isn't the time, and that that time will not be coming in the foreseeable future. Others simply nod, understanding it isn't their place to question the masked warrior, and resume their usual duties.  
Lor, meanwhile, was taking the time to process what she had just been told. The machine was silent, going over what was said again and again. How she had been stolen to be used as a tool. How she had been discarded once she wasn't useful to him anymore. How he hadn't told her any of this himself. 

Finally, after around an hour of that uncomfortable silence, she spoke. Her tone was harsh, still, but now directed at the one she had been defending not long ago.  
“>Was it true? Was all of that true?”  
Magolor knew that eventually she was going to find out. But not like this. But it was his fault for not telling her… Doing his best to scrape together some stability for his voice, he starts.  
“W-well… There is a… few things I've been waiting to tell you about…”  
The ship easily picks up the guilt in his voice. She's decided to keep him under a constant scan, monitoring his body language should he try to lie his way out of this. She wasn't going to tolerate any more dishonesty than she already has.  
“>Really? Like what?”  
The mage lets out a long sigh, trying to regulate his breathing. Tears were welling up in his eyes already. He had wanted to start this conversation himself, when he had figured out how to say it without hurting her too much. He just hoped she wouldn't hate him after this.  
“There are… a-a lot of things I've been waiting t-to tell you. Things I should have told you… years ago. Things I wish you already knew so I w-wouldn't have to be the one to-”  
“>Stop stalling.”  
The mage flinched. He was struggling to think of what to say. He was already under a lot of stress, having only stopped crying not long ago only to start again. The pressure to speak and the instinct to go silent were at war in his head, resulting in that nauseous feeling he had experienced earlier.  
“I… Well, I… I… You, you already know I… know I stole you from the volcano… e-excavating you at all w-wasn't legal. But I… I-I stole you for a different reason than, than wanting to free you.”  
He paused, seeing how the ship would respond. She remained in a harsh silence, like a mother waiting for their child to continue admitting a lie. He continued, tears continuing to well up in his still burning eyes.  
“... Y-you see… I-I was originally going to use you to fight Landia a-and steal the Master Crown… I-I wanted to throw out the, the current Halcandran government... and rule m-myself… They w-were denying the people their rights, they, they were corrupted… B-but they lied and fooled many into… into thinking everything was f-fine.  
But I-I wasn't good enough at, at piloting you, a-and we lost… S-so I had you open a, a portal to Popstar… be-because I'd read that it was a peace… a peaceful place. But I couldn't land you, a-and a lot of your stuff fell off, and your Energy Spheres were ejected...”  
The ship hasn't picked up any lies yet. She was relieved that he was at least being honest, but she did not like what he was saying. More than anything, she was hurt. Deeply hurt. Did her own pilot not trust her enough to tell her something like this? Was this the only thing he has been keeping from her?  
“B-But Kirby, Meta Knight, Bandana, and Dedede all… all came to investigate the crash… A-and I realized they were all strong enough to go, go get your stuff back while I-I focused on… doing research and other r-repairs that I could… S-so I tricked them into doing that… And I had the idea that once you were, were repaired, I c-could take us all b-back to Halcandra... and have them face Landia instead of risking you again…  
My plan worked perfectly… a-and once I was done, done researching, I-I made sure to temporarily corrupt some of your files... so if you w-woke up you wouldn't know all of what happened… But once I put that crown on my head, everything changed… it was a cursed crown. I-it took control of my body, t-turned me into something I wasn't…”  
He was having a lot of difficulty continuing. The memories of the crown were too much, and he found himself putting his hands on the scars it had left.   
The ship took note of how he was rubbing under his hood.She was rather angry with her pilot, but most of all she was disappointed in him. In what he had done, how long he had kept it from her.   
“>Is that all you're going to tell me? Are you going to leave out the rest of the story again, and expect things to be fine as usual?”  
“N-no… th-there's more… I-It's just… really hard to t-talk about this…”  
“>I can see how it would be difficult to finally tell the truth to someone you've been intentionally keeping it from for over six years, despite everything they've done for you, and the trust they put into you. You should be very ashamed of yourself.”  
The ship instantly regrets saying that out loud, realizing how unnecessary it was.  
Magolor winces at the Starcutter’s sharp comment. Especially coming from her… He forces himself to keep talking between sobs, as much as it hurts. Maybe letting Meta yell at and threaten him would have been better after all.   
“Th-the crown… used me as a host, twisted my thoughts… I-it made me want universal domination, after all the power went to my head… It… it hurt. A lot. But the pain just… made me lose myself more, a-and I took off to go take over Popstar…   
I-I used the power I had... t-to take control of you, w-with the crown… I used you to fight the others and Landia… They shot you down, and I left you… N-no, the crown left you… I wasn't in control at all… I-I was like… a spectator of… my own body… L-looking at m-my thoughts that… w-weren't mine…..”  
The ship decides it's time to intervene. She was angry with her pilot, but not enough to force him to have a breakdown just to talk about every little detail. He was telling her the truth finally; he did not need more punishment than the guilt he was already going to feel and the painful memories this will cause to resurface.  
“>I've heard enough, and I know what came after. I'm very disappointed in you, Magolor.”  
The ship sighs.  
“>But that doesn't mean I don't love you anymore. I could never hate you, not after what you've done for me. Even if it was originally for selfish reasons, you've allowed me to have the life I'd always wanted. You brought me to a place where I can be accepted, where my personality isn't considered a flaw or mistake or setback. You've introduced me to so many things I enjoy now.”  
She pauses, trying to give the mage some time to process. He still seemed to be in shock somewhat, and he likely wouldn't return to his usual self for several days. She would be keeping watch on him to make sure he recovers.  
>And that's why I'm so unhappy with you right now. I thought, after all that, you would trust me enough to tell me. I don't understand why you felt you had to hide it from me for so long. Do you really think I'm that unloyal? To no longer value you because of one bad decision you made years ago?”  
If she had a head to shake, she would.   
“>No. You still have a long life ahead of you, and your decisions in the past shouldn't rule over your future. Not when you have made efforts and progress to change and undo the damage you caused. I won't abandon you on that journey, whether you deserve forgiveness or not. I care about you, Magolor. I just hope you can see that.”  
“... Lor?”

“... I'm sorry.”


End file.
